Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air bag that is mounted on a vehicle and expands with expansion gas flowing from a substantially columnar inflator.
Background Art
In the related art, an air bag to which a substantially columnar inflator is connected includes an expansion portion that expands with expansion gas flowing from the inflator and a tubular connecting port, which is connected to the inflator by inserting a side of a gas outlet port of the inflator thereinto, to cause the expansion gas to flow into the expansion portion, and is formed of a sheet material with flexibility so as to be able to be folded (see JP-A-2015-063251). The sheet material is formed of a cloth material obtained by plain-weaving yarns made of polyester or polyamide, for example. A reinforcing cloth for enhancing heat resistance is appropriately disposed at the connecting port.
However, since the connecting port, into which the inflator is inserted, is formed of the sheet material (cloth material) with flexibility even if the reinforcing cloth is disposed, an operator manually and separately widens the opening portion of the connecting port when the inflator is inserted in the case of the air bag in the related art. Therefore, insertion of the inflator into the connecting port requires time and effort, and the air bag in the related art has a problem in the operation of inserting the inflator into the connecting port.
Furthermore, according to the air bag in the related art, there is a process of packing the air bag on site after fabrication, then moving the air bag, and connecting the inflator to the connecting port at a different place. In addition, at is not possible to assemble a large number of inflators to air bags at the same time due to management of the inflators, for example. In consideration of efficiency of assembly, it is desired to automatically assemble the inflator to the air bag in the related art.